Replace old Modena 102 combi with.........

[Zarch]

Hi all,

Had this Modena 102 for what must be well over 12 years and we want to replace with something more energy efficient and a little more reliable.

its 30kw and has a flow of 12.3 and is out in the old coal shed at the side of the house, so size not really an issue. Ie, don't need compact/kitchen cupboard type replacement.

We have 3 bedrooms, 1 bathroom and now have a rad up on the third floor in a loft conversion. The new rad up there was fitted with the thinner plastic piping whilst the rest of the house is the standard copper pipe. The loft rad is always slow to heat despite me balancing the system.

So my first question is, if i've got a 30kw system now, do I need to look at something bigger to solve the loft conversion rad?

For a replacement, i'm not interested in cheap stuff and I like the idea of a good warranty? Are 5 and 10 year warranties worth the paper they are written on?

I already have Nest installed, so don't need any on-boiler fancy stuff. Just off and on.

So what's the installers recommendation? Worcester? Baxi? Valiant? AN other?

Worcester seems straightforward, go for the Greenstar CDi classic range?
Baxi is less than straightforward, a confusing range on their website. Platinum / Ecoblue / Duotech?

Anyone other manufacturer to consider?

Many thanks for your time.

 

[cross thread]

i prefer the baxi duo tec /potterton range get the 33kw ,the rad to the loft sounds like its undersized pipework so no boiler is sorting that out

 

[shambolic]

Logic plus 35 with 7 year warranty. Give you better hw delivery and cope with rad output no bother.

 

[srhawksy]

Baxi platinum, 33kw 10 year warranty. If you wanted something quieter idve said logic boiler, but in a coal shed, Baxis the way.

 

[muggles]

Intergas EcoRF30 or EcoRF36, comes with a 10 year warranty and is a much simpler boiler, plus all the important bits are still made of brass and copper, unlike some supposedly "premium" makes who have now gone very plasticky in places. It's also nice and compact - if you've got somewhere to put an external expansion vessel, it stands just 240mm off the wall.

30kW is massive overkill on the heating side for a house your size; the problem with your loft radiator is the size of the pipework. Water will take the easiest route it can find, and travelling to what is probably the furthest radiator from the boiler using the smallest pipework in the house just isn't going to happen. You need to upgrade the pipework if you want it to work properly

 

[srhawksy]

Intergas EcoRF30 or EcoRF36, comes with a 10 year warranty and is a much simpler boiler, plus all the important bits are still made of brass and copper, unlike some supposedly "premium" makes who have now gone very plasticky in places. It's also nice and compact - if you've got somewhere to put an external expansion vessel, it stands just 240mm off the wall.

30kW is massive overkill on the heating side for a house your size; the problem with your loft radiator is the size of the pipework. Water will take the easiest route it can find, and travelling to what is probably the furthest radiator from the boiler using the smallest pipework in the house just isn't going to happen. You need to upgrade the pipework if you want it to work properly

Baxi i s pretty much all brass and copper...

 

[muggles]

Intergas EcoRF30 or EcoRF36, comes with a 10 year warranty and is a much simpler boiler, plus all the important bits are still made of brass and copper, unlike some supposedly "premium" makes who have now gone very plasticky in places. It's also nice and compact - if you've got somewhere to put an external expansion vessel, it stands just 240mm off the wall.

30kW is massive overkill on the heating side for a house your size; the problem with your loft radiator is the size of the pipework. Water will take the easiest route it can find, and travelling to what is probably the furthest radiator from the boiler using the smallest pipework in the house just isn't going to happen. You need to upgrade the pipework if you want it to work properly

Baxi i s pretty much all brass and copper...

Indeed they are, and for that reason they're always my second choice if an Intergas isn't suitable. Just a shame their control options are lacking

 

[srhawksy]

The that puts me off intergas, is the silly condensate trap..

 

[muggles]

It's not the prettiest, I'll grant you that. The new Rapid has an internal one

 

[Zarch]

Thanks for the responses, appreciated. Point noted about the pipework to loft rad, bloody builders.

Had a local fitter come round today and was recommended either:

Vaillant Ecotec plus 832 32kw with 10 year warranty
Gloworm Energy Combi 30kw with 7 year warranty (but could buy further years)

Not much in the price between the two quotes, virtually just the cost difference between the boilers.

Turns out the space under the stairs/in coalshed where the Modena currently sits is quite limited and installer recommended the gloworm as it was a tad smaller to help with space to put the magna clean unit back in etc. Give him some working room I think.

Hard to find any actual reviews out there on either boiler. The Gloworm has a Grundfos pump which seems a recommendation. Is there much difference internally between the two boilers as being owned by the same company?

Both models seem relatively new (in last year). Do you get what you pay for? ie the extra £250 between units?

Its all pretty confusing tbh when you don't know much about these things.

 

[BigSnoopy01]

I find intergas to have cheap nasty I'll fitting cases. Baxi are loud but ok, WB are fine, logics are good but 1 in 8 hexs fail, vogues are really nice.

 

[srhawksy]

It's not the prettiest, I'll grant you that. The new Rapid has an internal one

That's interesting, and an internal expansion vessel. Will have to find the cost. Are they heavy boilers?

 

[srhawksy]

Thanks for the responses, appreciated. Point noted about the pipework to loft rad, bloody builders.

Had a local fitter come round today and was recommended either:

Vaillant Ecotec plus 832 32kw with 10 year warranty
Gloworm Energy Combi 30kw with 7 year warranty (but could buy further years)



Not much in the price between the two quotes, virtually just the cost difference between the boilers.

Turns out the space under the stairs/in coalshed where the Modena currently sits is quite limited and installer recommended the gloworm as it was a tad smaller to help with space to put the magna clean unit back in etc. Give him some working room I think.

Hard to find any actual reviews out there on either boiler. The Gloworm has a Grundfos pump which seems a recommendation. Is there much difference internally between the two boilers as being owned by the same company?

Both models seem relatively new (in last year). Do you get what you pay for? ie the extra £250 between units?

Its all pretty confusing tbh when you don't know much about these things.

Vaillant own glow worm, so lots of similarities in the parts used.

 

[muggles]

It's not the prettiest, I'll grant you that. The new Rapid has an internal one

That's interesting, and an internal expansion vessel. Will have to find the cost. Are they heavy boilers?

Rapid 25 is £525+vat inc flue, R32 is £565+vat inc flue, both with three year warranty but can be extended to seven years for £125. Heavy enough to indicate good quality but the hex is ally remember so they're not a big lump

 

[muggles]

Thanks for the responses, appreciated. Point noted about the pipework to loft rad, bloody builders.

Had a local fitter come round today and was recommended either:

Vaillant Ecotec plus 832 32kw with 10 year warranty
Gloworm Energy Combi 30kw with 7 year warranty (but could buy further years)

Not much in the price between the two quotes, virtually just the cost difference between the boilers.

Turns out the space under the stairs/in coalshed where the Modena currently sits is quite limited and installer recommended the gloworm as it was a tad smaller to help with space to put the magna clean unit back in etc. Give him some working room I think.

Hard to find any actual reviews out there on either boiler. The Gloworm has a Grundfos pump which seems a recommendation. Is there much difference internally between the two boilers as being owned by the same company?

Both models seem relatively new (in last year). Do you get what you pay for? ie the extra £250 between units?

Its all pretty confusing tbh when you don't know much about these things.

The Energy is new on the market, and has made the switch to a cast aluminium downward-firing heat exchanger, which may or may not be a good thing. When Ideal did this with the Logic, early ones had a habit of splitting. Bit too early to comment on reliability as it's new out. Quite plasticky inside. Apparently the manual is the worst one ever written in the history of the world.

The EcoTEC has been around for years with minor tweaks; previously known as the 831, it now contains an energy-saving pump and a better laid-out interior but other than that is ostensibly the same boiler it always has been. A few known issues with the older model but haven't heard anything particularly worrying about the new one, which has been out for a few years now (they changed the model number from 831 to 832 when the energy saving pump regulations came in, to differentiate between the standard and A-rated pump models)